When someone injures their spine, there isn't a clean break or severing of the spinal column, Dr. Oz says, but rather the bones put a kink in it. To explain what the injury does, Dr. Oz says to visualize a piece of celery that has been twisted. While that celery is clearly broken, its fibers are still intact—this is similar to how nerves are still intact after a spinal injury.

The cold therapy that Dr. Cappuccino used on Kevin, Dr. Oz says, used the same medical concept you'd use when you put ice on a sprained ankle. "What they did was they put a few of these nerves that hold his head and his feet together, and they nursed it through," Dr. Oz says. "The cord, because it was in a cold case, didn't have to use up extra energy, and it didn't get swollen as much. This is still an experiment; it's how science advances—we talk to the family honestly and say, 'We want to do this because we think the risks are worth it for the benefits we'll get.'"

Dr. Cappuccino says he was concerned about what the repercussions could have been if cold therapy had not worked. "It goes through your head, if I do this and it blows up in my face, I really could be in a lot of trouble here. We could lose everything. But at some point, you have to put those things aside and focus on the job at hand," Dr. Cappuccino says. "[I took] the advice of my wife, who said, 'Use your conscience. If you use your conscience and do your best, you'll never go wrong.' And it worked out that way."